Dental Appliance

ABSTRACT

An appliance fabricated to improve the appearance of a patient&#39;s smile includes a plurality of simulated teeth. The interior surfaces of each of the teeth closely fits and conforms to the surface of a patient&#39;s real teeth while the outer surfaces of each of the simulated teeth has an ideal surface configuration. The dental appliance provides the patient with the appearance of a perfect set of teeth and an ideal smile without a need to alter the dental structure of the patient&#39;s teeth.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 60/665,343 filed Mar. 25, 2005, and U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application No. 60/666,203 filed Mar. 28, 2005.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to the field of dentistry andmore particularly, to a dental appliance which can easily be applied toimprove the smile of a patient.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

For years, dentistry has been evolving and has seen huge technologicaladvances. Included among these advances are extreme makeovers with theuse of bridgework or veneers as well as implants to replace the missingteeth. These reconstructions have a number of drawbacks:

Typical reconstruction procedures include a need to drill down healthytooth structures. This is done to allow the seating of the artificialmaterial either on or around the teeth. Some patients have a severeproblem allowing a dentist to drill down natural tooth structure toaccommodate something cosmetic. Healthy tooth structure is the mostcongenial and disease preventing material we can place near or overgingival gum tissue. Typical cosmetic reconstructions require removal oftooth structure to accommodate the reconstructive veneer. Typicalveneers need anywhere from ½ to 1 mm in thickness of porcelain to bebonded onto the tooth.

Once a tooth, whether it be for a crown or an implant or even a veneeris subjected to reconstruction or a restorative procedure, the materialor enamel that was taken away by a high powerful electric, air driven,hand piece can never grow back. This means that these dental fixtures orrestorations must be redone over time.

The procedures used for cosmetic purposes must make room for thecosmetic materials. Therefore, there is a need for drilling of toothstructure and this tooth structure can never come back.

These prosthesis are placed on a fluid, oral cavity and conditionschange over time. Over time, the gingival tissue changes and there iserosion of other teeth. As a result, there will be a need for changingthese prosthetics over time. When teeth are drilled, there is only amatter of time or distance from the pulp cavity that would require theneed for root canal treatment.

Initial placement of these cosmetic appliances will require extensiveamount of time and effort to keep them clean and healthy. Whether it beveneers or bridgework, extra time at home is needed to take care ofone's appliance.

If a patient is seeking to improve their smile, whether it be for anoccasion or for a look they are trying to attain, unless that patienthas perfect teeth and wants them whitened, the patient must go throughan extensive makeover.

When someone desires a smile makeover, they are at the hands of theclinician. There is no trial run to see the esthetic result. A patientmay want to have a say in the aesthetics, e.g., size, shape andcontours, but once a conventional dental device is bonded, there is nogoing back.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide an easily applieddental appliance which results in the patient having a beautiful smile.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich can be considered to be non-invasive.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich does not require removal of any portions of the patient's teeth.

Another object of the present invention which does not rely on bondingor cementing in order to be retentive in the patient's mouth.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich does not require any destruction or preparation of the toothstructure to facilitate a tight immovable fit.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich utilizes the surface configuration of the patient's naturaldentition for retention.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich requires only two dental visits.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich allows an evaluation of a cosmetic treatment prior to an invasiveprocedure being performed on a patient's teeth.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich can be fabricated either from molar to molar incorporating up tofourteen teeth on each arch or for as few as eight teeth.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich will rest at the gingival margin or gum tissue thereby causing noperiodontal disease.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich can be easily removed and reinstalled by the patient.

Another object of the present invention which can be used, in selectedcases, to replace missing teeth.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental appliancewhich is both economical and cost effective.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a dentalappliance which provides an effective smile make-over which isreversible and allows for future conventional dental procedures.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be made clearhereinafter.

In accordance with the invention, there is provided a dental appliancewhich includes a plurality of simulated teeth. The interior surfaces ofeach of the teeth closely fit and conform to the surface of a patient'sreal teeth while the outer surfaces of each of the simulated teethpresent an ideal surface configuration. The dental appliance providesthe patient with the appearance of a perfect set of teeth and an idealsmile without a need to alter the dental structure of the patient'steeth.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other important objects and advantages of the invention will be apparentfrom the following detailed description of the invention taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a dental device made according to thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the dental device of FIG. 1 taken along theline 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a canine tooth showing the contourof the enamel;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary front view showing the retentive areas of atooth;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a tooth showing retentive areas; and

FIG. 6 is a top plan view similar to FIG. 1 showing a dental devicewhich has been fabricated to provide the appearance of a wider smile;and

FIG. 7 is a front view similar to FIG. 2 showing the use of the dentalappliance to increase the vertical dimensions of the teeth.

FIG. 8 is a top plan view similar to FIG. 1 showing a dental devicewhich has been fabricated to compensate for lingual placement ofincisors.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With reference to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 1 a dentalappliance 10 made in accordance with the following invention.

The dental appliance 10 comprises a plurality of simulated teeth 12, 14,16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38 each of which is hollow.The interior surfaces of each of the teeth closely fits and conforms tothe surface of a patient's real teeth while the outer surfaces 40 ofeach of the simulated teeth 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 32,34, 36, 38 has an ideal surface configuration and conformance therebyproviding the patient with the appearance of a perfect set of teeth andan ideal smile without a need to alter the dental structure of thepatient's real teeth in any way. In the various Figs, the thickness ofthe walls 42 of the dental appliance has been exaggerated for purposesof clarity of illustration

The detailed method of construction of the dental appliance includingthe securement and retention of the dental appliance to the patient'sreal teeth will be described presently.

Several key aspects of dental anatomy which relate to the retention ofthe dental appliance may be best understood with reference to FIG. 3.

As is best shown in FIG. 3, all teeth have what are called contours aswell as interproximal areas. Each tooth in a patient's dentition has itsown unique shape which lends itself to have a certain protrusion or abulge at a certain location of the tooth. For example, if we look at thearea designed by the reference numeral 44 on this particular tooth 44,which happens to be an upper canine or the eye tooth, we see what wecall the height of contour of the tooth with the pronounced amount ofenamel 48. This happens to be on the facial aspect of the tooth 44 orthe cheek side.

The area designated by the reference numeral 50 indicates that there isa height of contour on the lingual or tongue side of the tooth as well.For retentive purposes, these contours are extremely important and willbe explained in further detail.

Another aspect of the retentive properties resulting from the use of apatient's own detention is what in the dental profession is referred toas the interproximal or area in between the tooth themselves.

With reference to FIG. 5, which illustrates of some anterior teeth 52,54, 56 of a typical dentition, we can have an understanding of theimportance of the interproximal area 58. This area or zone is thetriangle indicated by the broken lines 60, 62, 64 and is designatedgenerally by the reference numeral 58 and is defined as the area betweenthe teeth 52, 54 and 54, 56 which is created by the emergence profile ofthe teeth 52, 54, 56. This profile is established by anatomicalformation of teeth 52, 54, 56 coming out of the gingival gum 66 and thenflaring out to give a tooth its shape or body. As we can see, a toothdoes not just form a box when it arises or erupts from the socket,rather it is thinner at the neck 68 of the tooth 54 and then fans orflares till it reaches its maximum height 70, resulting in a tooth thatis wider at the top or what we refer to as an incisal or occlusalsurface. The occlusal surfaces are generally designated by the referencenumerals 72, 74, 76.

The thickness of the dental appliance 10 is decided by a number offactors. The thickness of some teeth is made thicker facially to haveteeth in alignment from an aesthetic standpoint. A common example iswhen two lateral incisors are lingually placed and the patient has adesire to have his or her smile in complete conformity. As is shown inFIG. 8, the dentist will fabricate the dental appliance 102, 104 withthe facial aspect of the two lateral incisors 106, 108 thicker than anyother of the front teeth 110, 112.

Another example is termed “stepping out the smile.” There is a verycommon situation when a tapered arch causes the patient to appearmissing posterior teeth upon smiling. When the patient presents withthis appearance, we attempt utilizing the dental appliance to bulk outthe posterior aspect, to give the patient the appearance and the resultof someone who has a more conformed aesthetically pleasing smile. Theclinician and the dental technician would create a thicker facial aspectas the dental appliance 80 goes from anterior to posterior. This hasbeen illustrated in FIG. 6 in which the thickness of the wall 82 hasbeen progressively increased from anterior 84 to posterior 86.

Another example relates to increasing the vertical dimension of theteeth. This is an extremely important application for the dentalappliance 10. A common occurrence in dentistry is a result of severegrinding or bruxism. The only tissue or structure that creates facialweight is a person's teeth. Through the years, as a patient grinds orbruxes his or her teeth, teeth surface is lost and the teeth becomeshorter and so does a patient's vertical dimension or facial height.This can cause a tremendous stress on the tempro-mandibular joint. Inthe past, the common treatment was to use the crown and bridge modalityand cap or crown the teeth to restore facial height. This treatment isdone firstly through the use of acrylic temporaries and thisnecessitates the doctor to drill down the teeth to place these crownseven for the use of temporary crown. Through the years, many patientswould be extremely apprehensive about committing to such a treatmentwithout knowing the final vertical or facial height. With the dentalappliance 90 according to the present invention, the dentist can use theappliance 90 to increase vertical dimension and achieve over the sametime period that conventional crown and bridge dentistry takes to createa proper vertical dimension and facial height. This has been illustratedin FIG. 7. In FIG. 7, the increased vertical dimensions of the teeth,which are indicated typically by the numeral 92, has been indicated bythe broken line 94.

The dental appliance 90 can gain more patient compliance and treatmentplan acceptability as well as achieve the same result without committingthe patient to irreversible crown and bridge therapy. Like any othermethod of treatment, careful record taking and treatment planning mustbe accomplished before dentist and patient choose the correct choice oftreatment.

In cases of use of the dental appliance 90, the increase of verticaldimension, the clinician instructs the technician to increase thicknesson the occlusal aspects and through proper bite records, the appliancecan be made properly.

The dental appliance 10 is made of acetyl resin which is much moredurable than acrylic, and which is what conventional crown and bridgetemporaries are fabricated of In some types of cases, when it is a longterm treatment, the dental appliance would offer the patient moreaesthetics and comfort, as well as the knowledge that this treatment istotally reversible if so desired.

The dental appliance 10 has been tested on over 300 patients. Thepatients seem to accommodate the appliances added thickness quite welland this seems to be achieved via the design of the appliance. First,the dental appliance 10 can be made as thin as 0.4 mm in thickness sothat the dental appliance, by itself, can create almost no interferencewith the occlusal aspect. Secondly, the design of the dental applianceis such that the liquid/aspect of the tooth of an upper arch has what wetermed occlusal windows. These allow the supporting cusp to protrude outof these windows creating intercuspation of the two arches, so to allowthe patient to fully close. The dental appliance 10 also enablespatients to chew food and allows them to utilize the appliance forextended periods of time.

The dental appliance 10 allows the patients to wear the appliancewithout having the need to use any adhesive or cement or the preparationof a patient's existing teeth.

The points of retention of the dental appliance 10 are best shown inFIG. 5 in which a typical tooth 100 is shown. The dental appliance 10 isengaged onto the tooth and rides over the bulge 102 or height 104 of thecontour of the tooth 100. The dental appliance 10 flaxes outwardly asthis occurs and then settles right under this height of contour andreturns to its original configuration thereby creating the retentivepoints 106, 108.

The retentive points 106, 108 are all supra gingivital and do notimpinge into the gingival tissue 110.

The utilization of the height 102, 104 of the contour of the tooth 100by the dental appliance 10 results in an extremely large amount ofretention capability. This retention capability ensures that the dentalappliance 10 will remain securely in place during all normal activities.

In a typical case where the dental appliance 10 covers twelve teeth,there are 24 areas or surface of retention.

As indicated previously, a preferred material for the dental appliance10 has been found to be acetyl resin. Acetyl resin in crystallized formhas a property which may be defined as “memory.” This property allowsthe dental appliance to flex in order to ride over the contour of thetooth and then flex back to its original configuration after the dentalappliance encounters the hard tooth structure. When it flexes back toencounter this hard structure, very strong retentive points are created,thus preventing the appliance from falling out or slipping even duringmastication.

The outer surfaces of the dental appliance 10 are made as thick as theoral cavity will allow. For instance, the space between the outersurface of a tooth and the inner surface of the lip defines the space inwhich the dental appliance can reside. If the outer surface of thedental appliance is too thick then the inner surface of the lip will beirritated. The outer surfaces of the dental appliance are polished tothe highest possible degree in order to prevent irritation and toprevent accumulation of tartar. The thickness of the outer surface isalso generally in line with the facial contours of the other teeth. Forinstance, if the dental appliance covers eight teeth, then the teeth oneither side of the mid-line act as a guide for the thickness of thedental appliance.

In some cases, the dentist will fabricate the dental appliance 80 in amanner which will widen the smile by building out the buccal aspect(cheek side) of the dental appliance from anterior to posterior. Anexample of this type of case was shown in FIG. 6. These cases areaccomplished when there is arch restriction of the teeth and there issufficient space between the teeth and the cheeks.

The following steps are followed during the fabrication and installationof the dental appliance 10, 80, 90 according to the present invention.

Evaluating the patient's dentition and oral cavity, the focus is on theteeth and their strength. The most important contraindication to theapplication of the dental appliance is severe periodontal disease. Mildperiodontal disease is not a problem as long as the teeth are notseverely mobile.

Creating an accurate impression of the teeth using stock dental trays.The trays should not touch any of the tooth structure so that anaccurate impression is formed of all of the tooth surfaces, includingfacial, buccal and lingual surfaces. Using a very accurate crown andbridge material preferably a polyether or a polyvinyl siloxane, anaccurate impression is created of the entire arch for which the dentaldevice is being fabricated.

Creating an impression of the counter arch. The material used for thecounter arch impression may be standard alginate material.

Creating an accurate bite registration impression using reposil or otherbite registration material.

Selecting the appropriate color and shade for the dental appliance inaccordance with the desired visual impression to be created.

Using the various dental impression and bite registration impression,fabricating the dental appliance. The outer contours follow the generalcontours of the patient's dentition; however, the visible outer surfacesare fabricated to provide the desired visual effect by adjusting thethickness of the dental appliance as needed and adjusting the length andcontour of each tooth to conform with an ideal standard as well as theaesthetics desired by the patient.

Installing the dental appliance by snapping the dental appliance overthe patient's dentition into the aforesaid retentive areas.

Allowing the patient to sit with the dental appliance in place forseveral minutes in order to accommodate any slight settling, tongueadaptations and for any pressure areas to subside.

Checking the occlusion using disclosing paper.

Performing occlusion adjustments if needed.

Polishing any areas of the dental appliance which have been adjusted.

The foregoing specific embodiments of the present invention as set forthin the specification herein are for illustrative purposes only. Variousdeviations and modifications may be made within the spirit and scope ofthe invention without departing from the main theme thereof.

1-11. (canceled)
 12. A dental appliance for improving appearance of apatient's teeth, comprising: a continuous wall that engages facial andlingual surfaces of the patient's teeth and provides a desired visualimpression including at least one of a selected color and a selectedcontour, the wall comprising: an inner surface adapted to engage withthe facial and lingual surfaces of the patient's teeth; and an outersurface comprising a tongue side arch and a visible cheek side arch,each of the arches extending from a first posterior location to ananterior portion and then to a second posterior location; whereinthickness of the wall between the inner and outer surfaces on the cheekside arch progressively increases toward the first and second posteriorlocations relative to the anterior location.
 13. The dental appliancerecited in claim 12, wherein the inner surface is further adapted toengage occlusal surfaces of the patient's teeth.
 14. The dentalappliance recited in claim 12, wherein the wall is configured to buildout a buccal aspect of the dental appliance from the anterior locationto one of the first and second posterior locations.
 15. The dentalappliance recited in claim 12, wherein the desired visual impressionfurther comprises a selected shade.
 16. The dental appliance recited inclaim 12, further comprising means for affixing the inner surface of thewall to the patient's teeth.
 17. The dental appliance recited in claim12, wherein the dental appliance is comprised of acetyl resin material.18. The dental appliance recited in claim 12, wherein the wall furthercomprises a first area corresponding to a lateral incisor of the patientteeth and a second area corresponding to a front tooth of the patient'steeth.
 19. The dental appliance recited in claim 18, wherein thethickness of the wall between the inner and outer surfaces on the cheekside arch for the first area is greater than the corresponding thicknessfor the second area.
 20. A dental appliance for improving appearance ofa patient's teeth, comprising: a continuous wall that engages facial andlingual surfaces of the patient's teeth and provides a desired visualimpression including at least one of a selected color and a selectedcontour, the wall comprising: an inner surface adapted to engage withthe facial and lingual surfaces of the patient's teeth; and an outersurface comprising a tongue side arch and a visible cheek side arch,each of the arches extending from a first posterior location to ananterior portion and then to a second posterior location; and means foraffixing the inner surface of the wall to the patient's teeth; whereinthickness of the wall between the inner and outer surfaces on the cheekside arch progressively increases toward the first and second posteriorlocations relative to the anterior location.
 21. The dental appliancerecited in claim 20, wherein the inner surface is further adapted toengage occlusal surfaces of the patient's teeth.
 22. The dentalappliance recited in claim 20, wherein the wall is configured to buildout a buccal aspect of the dental appliance from the anterior locationto one of the first and second posterior locations.
 23. The dentalappliance recited in claim 20, wherein the desired visual impressionfurther comprises a selected shade.
 24. The dental appliance recited inclaim 20, wherein the dental appliance is comprised of acetyl resinmaterial.
 25. The dental appliance recited in claim 20, wherein the wallfurther comprises a first area corresponding to a lateral incisor of thepatient teeth and a second area corresponding to a front tooth of thepatient's teeth.
 26. The dental appliance recited in claim 25, whereinthe thickness of the wall between the inner and outer surfaces on thecheek side arch for the first area is greater than the correspondingthickness for the second area.
 27. A method of fabricating a dentalappliance, comprising: creating an impression of a first dental arch ofpatient's teeth; creating an impression of a second dental arch of thepatient's teeth, the second dental arch being counter to the firstdental arch; creating a bite registration impression; and fabricatingthe dental appliance based at least in part on the impression of thefirst dental arch, the impression of the second dental arch, and thebite registration impression, the fabricating step comprising: formingthe dental appliance to have a continuous wall that engages facial andlingual surfaces of the patient's teeth and provides a desired visualimpression including at least one of a selected color and a selectedcontour; forming the wall to have (a) an inner surface adapted to engagewith the facial and lingual surfaces of the patient's teeth and (b) anouter surface comprising a tongue side arch and a visible cheek sidearch, each of the arches extending from a first posterior location to ananterior portion and then to a second posterior location; andconfiguring thickness of the wall between the inner and outer surfaceson the cheek side arch to progressively increase toward the first andsecond posterior locations relative to the anterior location.
 28. Themethod of claim 27, wherein the fabricating step further comprisesadapting the inner surface to engage occlusal surfaces of the patient'steeth.
 29. The method of claim 27, wherein the fabricating step furthercomprises configuring the wall to build out a buccal aspect of thedental appliance from the anterior location to one of the first andsecond posterior locations.
 30. The method of claim 27, wherein thefabricating step further comprises providing means for affixing theinner surface of the wall to the patient's teeth.
 31. The method ofclaim 27, wherein the fabricating step further comprises: forming thewall to have a first area corresponding to a lateral incisor of thepatient teeth and a second area corresponding to a front tooth of thepatient's teeth; and configuring the thickness of the wall between theinner and outer surfaces on the cheek side arch for the first area to begreater than the corresponding thickness for the second area.